Picker mechanism



Oct. 14, 1941. Q OSLUND 2,259,212

PICKER MECHANISM Filed April 16, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet l I1 E N T :1 R

CHARLES H. 08L UND Oct. 14, 1941. c. H. OSLUND 2,259,212

PICKER MECHANISM Filed April 16, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 ET LE..JTNVENTEIR 3 CHARLES H. OSLUND 7 I say Oct. 14, 1 941. I C O L ND2,259,212

PICKER MECHANISM Filed April 16, 1940 4 SheetsSheet 3 6a 54 '55 asJKIVENTUR CHARLES H OSLUND j lgt .3.

Oct. 14, 1941. Q OSLUND 2,259,212

PICKER MECHANISM Filed April 16, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 JV E N TEI RCHARLES H. OSLUND Patented Oct. '14, 1941 UNITED- STATES EA'IENT ()FFICEPICKER MECHANISM Charles H. Oslund, Worcester, Mass. Application April16, 1940, SerialNo. 329,936

15 Claims.

This invention relates to picker mechanisms, and more particularly to amechanism forming a part of a labeling machine and arranged to transferlabels from a label holder and place them in contact with the articlesto be labeled. My invention is well adapted for use in a labelingmachine of th rotary type, which comprises a rotary table on which thearticles, such as glass bottles, are-supported during the labelingoperation. In machines of this type, it is customary to employ a pair ofspaced substantially parallel picker blades which are first coated withadhesive and then moved into contact with the labels in a label holderto remove a set of labels therefrom' The pickers are then moved to a'position in front of the article, and a label gripper is brought intocontact with the central portions of the labels to hold them against thearticle, whereupon the pickers are withdrawn and the cycle is repeatedfor the next article. In so-called duplex machine's it is the practiceto employ two sets of pickers which transfer labels to alternatearticles on the table. Some machines are provided with mechanism forswiveling the picker blades to allow the articles topass betweenthem. a

Since labeling machines are often operated at high speeds, it isimportant to decrease the distance traveled by the picker blades, ifpossible, in order. to reduce their speed and avoid shock and. wear onthe driving mechanism. It is also important to avoid applying theadhesive to the picker blades while they are positioned above the table,as otherwise the table and articles will become spattered with adhesive.Interruptions in the movement of the pickers for the application ofIadhesive thereto are undesirable, since they necessitate higheroperating speeds during other parts of the cycle.

It is one object of the invention to provide a simple and inexpensivepicker mechanism so arranged that the pickers will have acomparativelyshort path of travel. a

It is a further object ofv the invention to provide a picker mechanismparticularly adapted for use with duplex labeling machines and soconstructed as to simplify the various parts'and reduce the number ofcams required.

' It is a further object of the invention to provide a picker mechanismof a simple and dependable construction having blades between which the.articles may pass without requiring driving mechanism. to separate theblades.

.' It isa further object of the invention to proto'which adhesive isapplied without interrupting the movement of theblades and while theblades are so located as to avoid spattering of adhesive on the articlesto be labeled;

With these and other objects in View, as will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art, the invention resides in the combination of partsset forth'in the specification and covered by the claims appendedhereto;

Referring to the drawings illustrating one embodiment'o'f the invention,and in which like reference numerals'indicate like parts,

Fig, 1' is a top plan View of a labeling machine;

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the machine viewed in the direction of thearrow 2 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an elevation of the machine viewed in the'direction of thearrow 3 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a. section on theiline 55 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is an elevation of the picker blades positioned 'in front of abottle;

Fig. 7 is afrag'mentary plan view, with the picke'r'blades shown insection on the line 'll of Fig". 3;T *1 i Fig. 18 is a View similar toFig. 7 showing one bottle passing. between two ofthe picker blades; and

Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 7 showing the pickerv blades after thebottle has passed the same, and indicating their subsequent positions inbroken lines.

r The embodiment illustrated comprises a circular horizontal table l5arranged to be rotated about a vertical axis by any suitable andwellknown means and'tosupport the articles to be labeled, suchasglassbottles. The bottles are placed upon the table in single file byfeeding mechanism of any suitable. type, and after they have traveledthrough somewhat less than one revolution they are removed from thetable by a suitable transfer mechanism. The tablerotates in a clockwisedirection as viewed in Fig. 1. Associated with the table are bottlelocating brackets It which engage the rear surfaces of the bottles closeto the table, vertically reciprocable clamps l! which engage the tops ofthe bottles to holdthem firmly against the table, and label grippers !8which extend upwardly through arcuate slots I9 in the table and movealong these slots to hold the labels against the bottles. These partsare of welleknown construction and hence require nozf urtherdescription.

The present invention provides a picker mech-- anism which serves toplace labels against the vide a" picker mechanism having picker bladesfront surfaces of the bottles, whereupon the label grippers l3 move intoengagement with the labels. In the particular embodiment of theinvention illustrated, the picker mechanism is of the duplex type, andthe construction is such that labels are applied to two consecutivebottles simultaneously. This has a number of advantages which willbecome apparent as the description proceeds.

My improved picker mechanism comprises two pairs of picker blades 20,the blades in each pair being spaced apart and substantially parallel.

These blades are arranged to move simultaneously into positions in frontof two of the bottlesand substantially radially of the table l5, as

shown particularly in Fig. 7, with the labels ad- 2,259,212 IL; 7 f fhering to the front surfaces of the blades. The

blades are preferably slightly inclined from the" vertical, with theirlower ends somewhat in ad Vance of their upper ends, as shown in Fig. 3,

allow'the passage of the bottles between them.

In the preferred construction this separation of the blades is broughtabout by the camming ac= tion of the bottles themselves, no separatedriving mechanism beingre'quired for the purpose. As illustrated, eachblade 2|] is fastened at its upper'end to an l -'-shaped member 2| (Fig.6) which is pivotally secured by means of a horizontal pin 22 to'asupporting bracket 24, there being one of these brackets 24 for eachpair of pickers. A coiled tension spring 25 connects the dependingportions of the members 2| to swing the picker blades toward oneanother, this movement being limited by vertical set screws 26 mountedin the inwardly extending portions of the members 2| and engaging thebracket 24. With this construction the forwardly moving bottles willearn the picker blades apart, as shown in Fig. 8, and the labels will becarried along by the bottles. The-springs 25 will return the blades totheir original positions as soon as the bottles have passed betweenthem.

Immediately after the bottles and the clamps have left the pickerblades, each pair of blades i is turned about a separate vertical axisuntil the operative or label engaging surfaces of all the blades arelocated in a c'ommonplane and face outwardly away from the table. Thisturning movement takes place in a direction Opposite the rotation of thetable I5, i. e. in case of clockwise table rotation as illustrated thepicker blades will be turned'counterclockwise. Because of theoriginal'radial positioning of the blades, the'forward pairfof bladeswill need to be turned through an angle slightly greater than ninetydegrees, as indicated by the broken lines in Fig. 9,- whereas therearward pair of blades will need to be turned through an angle slightlyless than ninety degrees. The vertical axes about which these term i Inorder that the desired turning motion of the picker blades may beobtained, each bracket 241s mounted on the lower end of a verticalshaft28 (Fig.- 3) and each of these shafts is rotatably sup ported inabearing 29 on a horizontal frame member 30 extending across a portion ofthe table |5 therebeneath and carried by two spaced upright columns 3|.A gear 33 is secured to the upper portion of each shaft 28, preferablythrough the medium of a suitable clamping device 34 mounted on the shaftabove the gear and provided with opposed screws 35 which engage a lug36, projecting upwardly from the gear, whereby the gear can be angularlyadjusted about the shaft as desired. Each gear 33 is oscillated by meansof a gear segment meshing therewith, the gear segment 38 which isassociated with the forward pickers having a somewhat greater pitchradius than the gear segment 39 which is associated with the rearpickers, since the latter require a smaller angle of oscillation. Thegear segments 38 and 39 are adjustably bolted to members and 4|respectively, each of which is pivotally mounted on a vertical pin 43carried by the frame member 30. Each of the members and 4| is providedwith a cam roller 44 (Fig. l) which engages a cam 45 mountedon'the'upper end of a vertical shaft 46. Each shaft 46 isrotatablysupported in an upper bearing 48 on the frame member 3|) and in a lowerbearing 49 on the adjacent column 3|. On the lower end of each shaft'46there is mounted a bevel gear 50, and these gears are driven by bevelgears 5| carried by a horizontal shaft 53 which is rotatably supportedin Suitable bearings 54 on the columns 3|, as shown particularly in Fig.3. The gearsand -5| are of equal size, so that the shafts 53 and 46rotate at the same speed. The horizontal shaft 53 is driven in timedrelation to the table l5 so that the shaft will. make one revolution foreach pair. of bottles which passes through the machines. For exam ple,if the table |5 is provided with eight bottle stations, the shaft-53willrotate at exactly four times the speed of the table; a

After the bottles have passed between the picker blades 20, andthelatter have started their turning movement under the influence of thecams 45, and associated mechanism to bring their operative surfaces-intoa common plane, they are swung outwardly and upwardly away from thetable 5 and into contact withthe labels in label holders 56 (Fig. 2);This swinging movement takes place about horizontal axes located nearthe upper ends of the pickers. In the preferred construction illustratedeach bracket 24 is Divotally connected by means of a horizontal pin 58(Fig. 3). to an offset arm 59 which extends downwardly from the lowerportion of the adjacent vertical shaft 28. The pins 58 are parallel withthe operative surfaces of the picker blades. Each bracket 24 is formedwith a'pair of spaced upstanding ears 60 which are pivotally connectedby means of aligned horizontal pins 6| (Fig. 5) to a ring 62. This ringis located between two vertically spaced flanges 64 on the lower end ofa vertical rod 65 which is slidable through the center of the adjacentshaft 28, .the latter being axially bored to receive the rod. -Theaperture in the center of the ring .62'i's of sufficient size to allowthe slight lateral movement required as the bracket 24 oscillates-aboutthe pin 58.

Means is provided to reciprocate the rods 65 and thereby. swingthe'picker blades to and from the label holder. For this purpose ahorizontal rod 61 extends parallel with the shaft 53 and is suitablysupported at its ends by brackets 68 (Fig. 2) carried by the columns 3|.This rod supports a sleeve 69 (Figs. 3 and 4) having a projecting arm Hwhich carries a cam roller".

.- This cam-roller engages al-cam.|3'mounted on the horizontal shaft 53.The sleeve 59 is also provided with two projecting arms 15 located nearits ends and connected by vertical links 16 to vertical rods 11 whichare slidably supported in bearings 18 on the frame member 30. As shownin Fig. 1, the oscillating members 40 and are provided with apertures 89to clear the bearings 18. Each rod 11 is connected to the adjacent rod65 to reciprocate the same, and this is preferably brought about by amechanism arranged to minimize the possibility of excessive friction. Asshown particularly in Figs. 1 and 3, each rod 1'! carries a hub 82thereon having a, horizontally projecting boss 83 which is bored toreceive a bar 84 projecting horizontally from a hub 85 carried by theadjacent rod 65. Thus, if the rods 11 and 55 are not exactly parallel,the bar 84 will slide slightly within the boss 83 and prevent the partsfrom binding.

Adhesive is applied to the operative surfaces of the picker bladesduring their outward and upward swinging movement, and preferablywithout interrupting or delaying such movement. For

the continued swinging motion will bring the operative surfaces of theblades, which are now in a common plane, into engagement with the gumrolls 81, and the latter will travel downwardly along the pickers underthe influence of the cam 91, applying adhesive to the pickers duringtheir outward travel without interrupting the same. As the gum rollsleave the lower ends of the pickers and return to the roll 90 for a newsupply of adhesive, the pickers will engage a set of labels in theholders56 and immediately swing downwardly again about the pins 58. Asthe pickers approach the table i5 they will be turned in a clockwisedirection by the action of the cams 45 this purpose there is provided apair of horizonthey are arranged to swing through a circular arcdirectly beneath the label holders. At the lower end of their swingingmovement'the rolls 81 engage the roll 99 of the usual gum box 9|. Inorder to actuate the gum rolls 81, there is provided a horizontal rod 93(Figs. 2, 3 and 4) parallel with the shaft 53 and supported at its endsin the frame columns 3|. This rod supports a sleeve 94 having aprojecting arm 95 which carries a cam roller 95. This cam roller engagesa cam 91 mounted on the horizontal shaft 53. The "sleeve 94 is alsoprovided with two projecting arms 98 located near its ends and connectedby vertical links 99 to the gum roll arms 88.

The operation of the invention will now be apparent from the abovedisclosure.

ship by a suitable source of power, and bottles will be supplied to thetable and removed therefrom by suitable mechanism. As the bottles, ap-

The shaft 53 v and the table l5 will be rotated in timed relationproachthe picker blades 20, the latter will be in the substantially radialpositions shown in Fig. '7, and the corresponding label grippers It!will move into contact with the central portions of the labels to holdthem against the bottles. As the bottles advance they will swing thepickers apart tween the pickers and strip the labels therefrom. Thesprings will restore the pickers to their original positions. As soon asthe clamps I! have cleared the pickers, the continued rotation of thecams will transmit motion through the gear segments 33 and 39 to thegears 33 and turn the shafts 28 in a counter-clockwise direction untilthe operative surfaces of the pickers are in a common plane. At thistime the pins 58 will be in alignment. During the turning movement ofturning motion, the two motions thus overlapping.

Immediately after the turning motion has ceased,

about the pins 22, allowing the bottles to pass be- T and again assumeradial positions in front of the next pair of bottles, thus completingone operating cycle.

It will be noted that although this is a duplex machine, which labelstwo bottles in each cycle, nevertheless only four cams are required forthe operation of the entire picker mechanism, including the gum rolls.This greatly reduces the cost of manufacture. The label holders 56 arelocated close to the table, so that the path of travel of the pickers iscomparatively short. The adhesive is applied to the pickers while theyare swinging outwardly, and spattering of adhesive on the table andbottles is avoided. The picker blades are separated by the cammingaction of the bottles themselves, so that the construction is greatlysimplified. 7

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

l. A labeling machine comprising means to move articles to be labeledalong a predetermined path, a pair of picker blades arranged to transferalabel into aposition in front of one of said articles, a supportingbracket for the picker blades, the picker blades being pivotally securedat their upper ends to the bracket in such a manner that they will beswung apart substantially in the plane of their operative surfaces bythe camming action of the article as it passes between them, and springmeans yieldably urging the picker blades toward one another.

2. A labeling machine comprising means to move articles to be labeledalong a predetermined substantially horizontal path, a label picker,means to oscillate the picker about a substantial- :lyvertical axislocated closely adjacent to the said path, and means to oscillate thepicker about a substantially horizontal axis in a definite relationshipto its movements about the vertical axis.

3. A labeling machine comprising means to move articles to be labeledalong a predetermined substantially horizontal path, a label picker,means to oscillate the picker about a substantially vertical axiswhichintersects the said path, and means to oscillate the picker about asubstantially horizontal axis in a definite relationship to itsmovements about the vertical axis.

4. A labeling machine comprising a rotary table to support articles tobe labeled, a label picker,

means to oscillate the picker about a substantially vertical axislocated close to the picker and inside the periphery of the table, andmeans to oscillate the picker about a substantially horizontal axis in adefinite relationship to its movements about the vertical aXis.

' 5. Alabeling machine comprising a rotary table to support articles tobelabeled, a substantially vertical shaft located above the path of thearticles on the table, a label picker extending downwardly from theshaft, means pivotally conmeeting the picker to the shaft on asubstantially horizontal axis parallel with theoperative sur-Z face ofthe picker, means to oscillate the shaft, and means tooscillate thepicker about its'pivotal connection in a definite relationship to theoscillation of, the shaft.

6. A labeling machine comprising a substantially vertical hollow shaft,a label picker extending downwardly therefrom, means pivotallyconnecting the picker to the shaft on a subs'tantially horizontal axis,a rod extending through the shaft, means connecting the lower end of therod to the picker so that verticalmovements of the rod will cause thepicker to swing about the said axis, means to oscillate the shaft, andmeans'to reciprocate the rod in a definite relationship to theoscillations of the shaft. 7,,A labeling machine comprising asubstantially vertical hollow shaft, an offset arm on the lower portionofthe shaft, a bracket pivotally connected to the arm on a horizontalaxis, a picker blade secured to the bracket and extending downwardlytherefrom, a rod extending through the shaft, means providing verticallyspaced flanges on the lower portion of the rod, a ring located betweenthe flanges, two ears projecting from the bracket on opposite sides ofthe ring, horizontally aligned pins connecting the earsto the ring,means to oscillate the hollow shaft, and means to reciprocate the rod ina definite relationship to the oscillations of the shaft.

8. A labeling machine comprising a substantially vertical hollow shaft,an offset arm on the lower portion of the shaft, a bracket pivotallyconnected to the arm on a horizontal axis, a picker blade secured to thebracket and extending downwardly therefrom, a rod extending throughtheshaft, means connecting the lower end of the rod to the bracket sothat vertical movements of the rod will cause the picker to swing aboutthe said axis, a gear mounted on the upper portion of the shaft, a gearsegment meshing with the gear, a cam rotatable about a substantiallyvertical axis, means connecting the cam to the gear segment to oscillatethe same, and means to reciprocate the rod in a definite relationship tothe oscillations of the gear segment. I

9, Ailabeling machine comprising a substantially vertical hollow shaft,an offset arm on the lowerportion of the shaft, a bracket pivotallyconnected to the arm on a horizontal axis, a picker blade secured to thebracket and extending downwardly therefrom, a rod extending through theshaft, means connecting the lower end of the rod to the bracket so thatvertical movements of the rod will cause the picker to swing about thesaid axis, a second substantially vertical rod slidably mounted adjacentto the first-mentioned rod, means connecting the upper portions of the.two, rods, means to oscillate the hollow shaft, and driving meansconnected to the lower end of the second rod to reciprocate the same ina definite relationship to the oscillations of the shaft.

10. A labeling machine comprising a rotary table to support articles tobe labeled, a substantially vertical shaft located above the path .ofthe articles, two spaced picker blades extend ing downwardly from theshaft, means pivotally connecting the blades to the shafton asubstantially horizontal axis parallel with the operative surfaces ofthe blades, the blades being located in a substantially radial positionin front of an article as it approaches, a label holder located at oneside of the table, means to turn the shaft in adirection opposite to thedirection of rotation. of the table after, the article has.

passed between the blades and thus cause the operative Surfaces off theblades to face away from the table, means to swing the blades upwardlyand outwardly about the said horizontal axis, and into en agement with alabel in the said holder, meansto apply adhesive to the blades as theyswing upwardly and outwardly, meansto swing the blades with a labelthereon in the opposite direction, and means to turn the shaft in theopposite direction and thus return the blades to their originalpositions.

11. A labeling machine comprising two pairs of picker blades, actuatingmeans for the blades arranged to align the operative surfaces of bothpairs of blades in a common plane during one portion of the operatingcycle, and means to apply adhesive to .the blade surfaces while they arethus aligned.

12. A labeling machine comprising means to move articles to be labeledalong a predetermined path in single file, two pairs of picker blades,label holding means, means to move the picker blades to align theiroperative surfaces, means to apply adhesive to the blade surfaces whilethey are thus aligned, means to move the adhesive-coated blades intocontact with labels in said holding means, and means to move therespective pairs of blades with labels thereon into positions in frontof two consecutive articles.

.13. A-labeling machine comprising a rotary table arranged. to support aseries of articles to be labeled in single file, two pairs of pickerblades, label holding means, means to move the picker blades to aligntheir operative surfaces, means to apply adhesive to the blade surfaceswhile they are thus aligned,,means to move the adhesivecoated bladesinto contact with labels in said holding means, and means to move therespective pairs of blades with labels thereon into substantially radialpositions in front of two consecutive articles on the table.

14. A labeling machine comprising a rotary table arranged tosupport aseries of articles to be labeled in single. file, two substantiallyvertical shafts above the path of the articles on the table,

*a pair of picker blades pivotally secured to the in a substantiallyradial position in'front of one article as it approaches, label holdingmeans located atone side of the table, means to turn the shafts andbring the said axes into aligmnent, means to swing the blades upwardlyand outwardly about the said axes and into engagement with labels insaid holder, means to apply adhesive to the blades as they swingupwardly and outwardly, means to swing the blades with labels thereon inthe opposite direction, and means to turn the shafts in the oppositedirection and thus return the blades to their original positions.

15. A labeling machine comprising a rotary table arranged to support aseries of articles to be labeled in single file, two substantiallyvertical hollow shafts above the path of the articles on the table, anoffset arm on the lower end of each shaft, a, pair of picker bladespivotally secured tiallyradial position in front of one article as itapproaches, label holding means located at one side of the table, avertical rod extending through Jea'ch shaft, means connecting the lowerends of means, two horizontally aligned gum rolls, and a single rotarycam connected to both the gum rolls and arranged to move them over theoperative surfacesof the blades as they swing upwardly and outwardly,the rod-actuating cam serving to swing the blades with labels thereondownwardly toward the table, and the shaft-actuating cams serving toturn the shafts in the reverse direction and thus return the blades totheir 10 original positions.

CHARLES H. OSLUND.

